Political Insider

No 'likes' on the clock: New rules for federal workers on social media, politics

The screen image from Facebook.com shows the Facebook page of President Barack Obama. Obama wants you to like him. And comment on him. And share his posts, too. The president now has his own personal Facebook page. "President Obama, public figure" went live Monday, Nov. 9, 2015. (Facebook.com via AP)
The screen image from Facebook.com shows the Facebook page of President Barack Obama. Obama wants you to like him. And comment on him. And share his posts, too. The president now has his own personal Facebook page. "President Obama, public figure" went live Monday, Nov. 9, 2015. (Facebook.com via AP)
By Daniel Malloy
Nov 16, 2015

The federal government has issued new guidelines for what its employees can and can't do to support favored presidential candidates.

So if your paycheck comes from Uncle Sam, feel free to like one, but don't "like" one, at least until you're off the clock. Same goes for political sparring with Uncle Randy in the comment section.

If your job is in intelligence or law enforcement, you can "like" or comment on a tweet from a candidate when you're not working — but you can't share or retweet it even when you're off duty.

And if you're on a coffee or lunch break at the office, you must walk out of your building to post anything on social media that would be considered partisan, even from your personal smart phone or laptop. Even from the bathroom or cafeteria.

(A version of this post appeared in this morning's Daily Jolt.)

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Daniel Malloy

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